Saturday, May 9, 2015

Dad
used to tell a little story about a cousin of his named “Euness
Hankins”, a daughter of Great Aunt Bea. They were always friends
when they wereyoung. They had also both heard family stories of being
Cherokee. Well Dad heard she had found out something new about our
Indian heritage, and so he asked her what she found. Now dad told me
this story, because I asked him about our Indian heritage at some
point. He said Eunice replied to his query; “Oh, you just want that
Indian money.” Well this so embarrassed Dad that he just let the
topic go. I am not sure if Dad ever spoke to her after that. But that
little story made me think there might be proof of our Indian
heritage, somewhere, is some document, somewhere.

I
have written quite a bit about our Gist/Guess ancestors in my blog,
but haven't touched much upon my Brown's. Recently we have had a huge
breakthrough, and I wanted to share it. I'd like to start with Aunt
Lorena's letter. Most of Dad's brothers and sister's had passed on,
but I remembered Aunt Lorena. I knew she and mom were best friends
growing up, and they still talked all the time on the telephone. So I
wrote her a letter asking her about our Indian ancestry. She wrote me
a letter and here is a small section of it.:Dad
told me about a story his grandmother had told him. Dad said she was
thumbing through his Oklahoma history book. She had pointed to a
picture of an Indian in the book, and dad said she told him, “Do
you know you are related to him?” The whole family thought it was
Sequoyah, because her mother's maiden name was “Guess”. Here is
part of what Aunt Lorena wrote me.

I
remember more about what our mother told us than grandmother Richey.
Wehad a wonderful grandmother and I suppose she talked more about
Sequoyah to theboys than to us girls. Alpha was almost 6 years
older than I. She was a Brown beforeshe married grandfather
Richey. Her mother was a Guess before she married greatgrandfather
Brown. I think mama said she was a niece of George Guess, “Sequoyah”.

Well,
I've talked a great deal about searching our Guess/Gist ancestors.
Today I will cover the “Brown” part. The person Aunt Lula called
called “grandmother Richey” was my great grandma, and her maiden
name was Josephine Brown. Her father, David B. Brown, appears in a
tax list in 1847 in Walker County, Alabama with his father, John
Brown. In 1848 David appears on a tax list in Lawrence County,
Arkansas with the following family: Tracing them before 1820 when
John Brown married Polly [Mary] Black has been difficult. Now family
story says they were Cherokee but we can't prove it. And do you know
how many Cherokees there were named “John Brown” who were alive
during his lifetime? We have found three on the Reservation Rolls,
alone! And I suspect there were others NOT on the Reservation Rolls.
Also, while researching our family, I have found several other
people, who are not federally enrolled, like us, who claim to descend
from a Cherokee named “John Brown”, and NONE of them were OUR
John Brown. So I really got discouraged. How can I determine which
John Brown is which? I tried to get information from the NARA
offices in Fort Worth but they refused to help me. They said I had to
go down there myself. I became discouraged, and let it slide. I
searched for our ancestors in Indian rolls, census records, county
documents, and other historical papers.

Here
is much of what we know, at present.

In
Alabama. John Brown married Polly Black. Dec 23, 1820 in Lawrence
County, Alabama.This marriage is found in early Lawrence County,
Alabama marriage records. JohnBrown was married in Lawrence
County, Alabama in 1820. 1830 census Lawrence County, AlabamaJohn
Brown 111000001, 2112001. Three males fifteen or under, 2 females
five or under, 2 females between 5 and 15 years of age, and 2 females
between 15-20. Mary 40-50, and there is no male the age of OUR John
Brown, but there is an elder male 60-70 years old. He would have been
the head of household, and his name was John Brown. They live near
the Emanuel McNutt household where John’s son, David’s future
wife lives. There is also a William McNutt nearby. He appears to be
Emanuel McNutt's father. Emanuel was Harriet Guess/Gist's
step-father. Harriet married David B. Brown, and they are my great
great grandparents. Both William McNutt's and John Brown's appear on
documents mentioned pertaining to Rachel [Havens] Gist/Guess's
father, James Havens. Rachel was Harriet's mothr. All these families
knew each other, and are interconnected. There is also the head of a
household named “William Black” living nearby as well. Perhaps
this is the family of Polly (Mary) Black, wife to John Brown. By 1840
they are living in Walker County, Alabama’s, and are listed on the
Alabama census records for that year (10120001,0110101). On this
census there IS a John Brown, 50-60 years old. If the elder John
Brown were still in the household he is not mentioned. He is
probably deceased, and he would have been 70-80 years old, at least
20 years older than the John Brown presently named as the head of the
household. On 1847 tax records John Brown is still alive. A second
John Brown is already deceased and his wife Hannah is mentioned.
David Brown is on the same tax records. So after marrying Harriet in
Shelby County, Tn (the Memphis area) in 1841, he has returned to the
place of his birth. Marriage problems? Did she go with him? They had
no children during those years. Perhaps we will never know. By 1850
census, my John’s widow Mary, is head of household in Walker
County, Alabama,so he seems to have died between 1847 and 1850.
Nothing is known of him before his marriage to “Polly” [Mary]
Black. There was a “Brown’s Ferry” on the Lawrence/Limestone
county lines across the Tennessee River. Melton’s Bluff is nearby.
We have Gist relations who knew Jason Cloud, who knew a Cherokee
named John Brown of the
other Brown’s
Ferry near what is today Chattanooga, Tennessee. But we have hit dead
ends at this point. Maybe one day we will find more. Once we thought
it was impossible to discover our branch of the Gist’s, but we have
with the help of others. Maybe what is needed is for all the Brown’s
to get together and compare notes. Perhaps something else. Maybe
we’ll never know. (1).

Our
Brown's, 1850 census, Lawrence Co., Arkansas

David
B. Brown 29 farmer Ala

Harriet
Brown 33 Ala

Nancy
I. Brown 7 Tenn

Thomas
McNutt 16 farmer Ala

Nancy
A. Loony 6 Ala

Thomas
Opdych 61 physician Ohio

Our
“Josephine” (my great grandma) wasn't born until 1854. Harriet
(Guess) Brown's last step father was Emanuel McNutt. Thomas McNutt
was her half-brother. They had the same mother. Nancy I. Brown's
'real name' was Nancy I joiner. Another of Harriet's ha-f sinlings
was Cynthia McNutt. Cynthia married Thomas S. E. Joiner. Nancy I. was
their daughter.

In
1860 this family looked like this:

Thomas
McNutt 26 laborer Ala

Orlena
McNutt 25 Ala

James
McNutt 21 Arkansas

Betsy
A. McNutt 3/12 Ark

“
— next
door is – “

David
B. Brown 37 Al

Harriet
Brown 43 Tn

Nancy
I. Brown 17 Tn

Nancy
A. Brown 15 Al

John
Brown 8 Ar

Josephine
Brown 6 Ar

Sarah
A. Brown 3 Ar

Amanda
Brown 1 Ar

Notice
“Nancy A. Loony” on the 1850 census has become “Nancy A.
Brown”. I cover these things in my book, “Finding Our Indian
Blood”. Thomas McNutt (Harriet's half brother) had married a girl
named “Orlena”. Just who is “Orlena”? This brings us to
another family who had just moved to Lawrence County, Arkansas.

1860
census, Lawrence County, Arkansas

:Mary
Brown 59 NC

Nancy
J Brown 19 Ala

Martha
L. Brown 16 Ala

(next
door)

Malinda
JOHNSON 34 AL Laborer

Nancy
“ 13 AL

Levi
“ 12 AL

David
“ 10 AL

Thomas
“ 1 AR

Now,
who are these Brown's? Are they related to ours? Well, to answer
that, we have to keep searching.

1850
Walker County, Alabama census

Mary
Brown 49 NC

Linday
Brown 25 Ala

Elizabeth
Brown 16 Ala

Orleny
Brown 15 Ala

Alfred
Brown 13 Ala

Nancy
Brown 10 Ala

Martha
Brown 8 Ala

Syntha
Brown 4 Ala

Nancy
Brown (inmate) 5 Ala

Levy
Brown (inmate) 3 Ala

David
Brown (inmate) 1/12 Ala

How
does this family compare to the 1840 census of the family of John
Brown, just discussed?Keep consider that families are dynamic things,
as older family membrs move out or the household or pass on, and
younger family members are born. Sometimes family members get married
and the spouse moves in with them. Knowing that, let us check.

males

1
– 0-5 Alfred Brown would have been 3

0
– 5-10 no mention

1
– 10-15 no mention. One researcher mentions a Nehemiah Brown who
would have been 11 years.

2
– 15-20 Our David would have been one of these, abt. 17.

0
– 20-30

0
– 30-40

1
– 40-50 John Brown, would have been 70-80. He is not on the 1840
census, but another John Brown IS on the 1840 census, in the same
household, who would have been 40-50 years old..This means his birth
would have been between 1790-1800.

females

2
– 0-5 Nancy would have been a baby, Orlena about 5.

1
– 5-10 Elizabeth would have been 6.

1
– 10-15 Malinda would have been 15

2
– 15-20 – unknown. Ten years later they would have been 25-30
years old – perhaps married.

0
– 20-30

0
– 30-40

1
– 40-50 Our Mary (Polly) Brown would have been 39. However often
there are census records that are a few years off,

The
1850 of Walker County, Alabama is the same family found in Arkansas
in 1860! Notice “Orleny” and recall “Orlena” Notice “Malinda
Johnson” and compare her to “Linday Brown”. Notice children
named Nancy, Levi, and David. Nancy and martha are also daughters of
Mary Brown, but about 10 years older in 1860. These things are NO
coincidence – it is the same family. Was Malinda's son David named
after Malinda's older brother, also named David, MY ancestor, David
Brown? It sure seems that way, but we need proof.

Proof
David B. Brown is the son of John Brown and Polly (Mary) Brown

One
name missing from the 1860 census in Arkansas is Alfred Brown. Where
is he? Well, it just so happens that we
have found Alfred Brown in Hopkins County, Texas in the 1860 census,
is 22 years old, and says he was born in Alabama. In 1870 we have the
following family in Lawrence County, Arkansas;

1870
Census Lawrence County, Ar

Alfred
Brown 33 laborer Al

Nancy
I. Brown 25 keeping house Tn

Mary
J Brown 5 Ar

Louisa
Brown 3 Ark

Alice
Brown 2/12 Ark

Look
at his wife – Nancy I Brown. This is the same girl who was daughter
to Harriet's half-sister! Her real name was Nancy I Joiner, but was
known as Nancy I. Brown. This ties the two Brown families even
closer. The final proof of the relationship between David and Alfred
Brown can be found in the 1880 census. Per great uncle's Oscar
Richey's interview for “Indian Pioneer Papers”, we find after
Jeff Richey married Josephine Brown in 1872, they moved just inside
Indian Territory borders near Fort Smith. However, by 1880, they had
moved again to live in Denton County, Texas. Here is the census of
1880 Denton County, Tx;

1880
Census, Denton County, Texas

Jeffrey
H. Richey, age 28, Ar, In, Ar

Josephine,
26, Ar, Al, Al.

Etta
E., 2, Tx, Ar, Ar.

Swaney,
1, Tx, Ar, Ar.

Mandy
Knight, 18, sister-in- law, Ar, Al, Al.

Mary
J. Brown, 16, cousin, Ar, Al, Al.

Notice
the “cousin” Mary J Brown, 16 years old and there is the census
10 years earlier of Alfred Brown with a daughter named Mary J Brown,
5 years old. Notice it says BOTH her parents were born in Alabama
while she was born in Arkansas. She IS the daughter of Alfred Brown
and Nancy [Joiner] Brown. Josephine is Mary's cousin if her father,
David Brown, and Alfred Brown, are BROTHERS! We have not found Alfred
Brown on any later census records. But with his daughter living with
my family in Denton Co., Tx in 1880, I think we have made a pretty
strong case that David Brown and Alfred Brown are brothers.

About
John Brown, Cherokee

I
was told the following by a CDIB card-carrying enrolled member of
the Cherokee Nation:

John
Brown, (Cherokee) in the U.S. House of Representative Private Claims,
Vol. 1 Record Image Index-only record Report issue

Name:
John Brown, (Cherokee) Nature of Claim: Compensation for improvement
on lands relinquished

Congress:
23 Session: 1 Manner Brought:

Petition
Journal Page: 50

Referred
to Committee: Indian Affairs

This
is the John Brown the records were connected to ........

John
Brown Birth 1795 in Unknown Death 1855 in Walker County, Alabama, USA

Prisoner
Of War David was listed on a roll of prisoners from Corinth,
Mississippi at Provost Marshal's Office October 14, 1862. He was at
the battle of Shiloh, Pittsburg Landing Tennessee; the Battle of
Iuka, Mississippi on 19 September 1862, the battle of Corinth on the
3rd & 4th; Hatchie on the 5th and 6th of October.

But
still, I am trying to differentiate between my Brown's and others, to
discover how they go back to the Cherokee, and if there are records
that can prove it.

Searching
for More Information Based on What I've Been Told

FOLKS
– THAT IS US!! But HOW do they attach OUR John Brown to the one in
those documents? If we can just do that, he have the connection we
need. Apparently there is a record from the 21st
and 23rd session of Congress of our John Brown asking to be
compensated for improvements on lands he'd relinquished, and the
names of his wife and children are apparently mentioned. Some things
are still not clear about this, so more work is needed to be done.
Each time we find something, it leaves more questions than it
actually answered . . . back to the drawing board, to seek more
answers. And I wonder if this is what dad's cousin Euness found? --
that elusive proof . . .

I
was able to contact someone at Congressional Archives who sent me the
following information:

Dear
Mr. Hawkins:

In
looking at an index, I saw that your John Brown began petitioning in
the 21st Congress, and in the 24th Congress a private law was enacted
on his behalf.

Through
it you'd be able to see the one-sentence references to his
submissions of petitions in the 21st, 22nd, 23rd and 24th Congresses.
Those entries are in the House Journal. For the 21st
Congress, 1st session on page 318; for the 21st Congress, 2nd session
on page 163; for the 22nd Congress, 1st session on page 387; for the
22nd Congress, 2nd session on page 79; for the 23rd Congress, 1st
session on page 50; and for the 24th Congress, 1st session on page
96.

You'd
be able to see the law in Volume 6 of United States Statutes at Large
on page 692.

I'll
put in the mail to you a copy of the law as well as a printed copy of
House Report 73 of the 22nd Congress, 2nd session, to accompany bill
H.R. 717 (that you'd also be able to see from the same site) on
behalf of James Brown and John Brown.

Typically
the same petition is submitted over and over again, which would
explain why I didn't see a copy when I looked in appropriate places
for the 21st, 22nd, and 23rd Congress. From the 24th Congress
I'll send you a photocopy of the letter on the back of which was
written "James & John Brown - March 20 1837 - Papers sent as
within requested" The front of the letter from the 2nd
Auditor's Office in the Treasury Department was the request: "You
will please send to the Department of the 2nd auditor all the papers
relating to an act fro the relief of James & John Brown, half
breeds, of the Cherokee Nation of Indians, passed the 3rd March
1837."

If
you want to pursue a quest to locate the paperwork in question, send
a new e-mail to archives1reference@nara.gov For the subject
line put: RG 217, 2nd Auditor request

In
the body of the e-mail state that you're looking for the paperwork
send from the House of Representatives to the Treasury Department's
2nd Auditor Office on March 9, 1837, in follow-up to a private law
passed on March 3, 1837, "for the relief of James and John
Brown, half breeds, of the Cherokee Nation of Indians."
Indicate that you're looking for the paperwork associated with
John Brown.

Those
particular records are extremely difficult to work with. It
could be that the archivist who responds will simply invite you or
your designated research representative to come to the National
Archives Building to attempt to locate the desired paperwork. I
don't know if that will be the case. If it is, one option would
be to contract with someone in the Washington area to undertake
research on your behalf, with names on this list:

So,
someone assured me our family was the same John Brown mentioned in
records found in Washington DC. I have found a Cherokee named John
Brown about the same age as ours, but he at present, have no
connection between that Cherokee family that ties them to our Brown's
other than circumstance. I am hoping these Congressional records in
Washington DC will fill up that void. I searched the web site she
suggested and found a few things:

21st
congress, 1st
session, Journal of the House of Representatives of the United
States, 1829-1830MONDAY,
February 22, 1830.

Mr.
Standifer presented a petition of JohnBrown,
a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Indians, praying to be paid for
improvements made by him on lands, which were afterwards reserved by
treaty between the United States and the Cherokee Indians, to a
certain David Fields.

Ordered, That
the said memorials and petitions be referred to the Committee on
Indian Affairs.

21st
congress, 2nd
session

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?hlaw:2:./temp/~ammem_T3bO::

On
motion of Mr. Standefer,

Ordered, That
the petition of JohnBrown,
presented February 22, 1830, be referred to the Committee on Indian
Affairs.

January 28,
1833 Read twice,
and committed to a Committee of the Whole House to-morrow. Mr.
Thompson, of Georgia, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, reported
the following bill: A Bill For the relief of James Brown
and JohnBrown,
half breeds, of the Cherokee nation of Indians.

Ordered,
That the petitions of JohnBrown,
presented February 22, 1830, and James Brown,
Cherokee Indians, presented March 2d, 1830, be referred to the
Committee on Indian Affairs.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?hlaw:3:./temp/~ammem_CSSh::

Mr.
Thompson, of Georgia, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, made a
report on the petitions of James Brown
and JohnBrown,
half breeds of the Cherokee nation of Indians, accompanied by a bill
(No. 717) for their relief; which bill was read the first and second
time, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House to-morrow.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?hlaw:4:./temp/~ammem_CSSh::

Ordered,
That the petition of JohnBrown,
a Cherokee Indian, presented February 22, 1830, and the petition of
James Brown,
a Cherokee Indian, presented March 2, 1830, be referred to the
Committee on Indian Affairs

The
following Brown's are listed on the Reservation Rolls:; Reservation
ID. 60, Alexander Brown, 61, James Brown, 62, John Brown, 63, John
Brown Jr, 64, John Brown Sr, 65, Polly Brown, and 66, William
Brown..David Fields was assigned the reservation #165.

James
Brown

Bills
and Resolutions, House of Representatives, 22nd Congress, 1st
Session, Read twice, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House
to-morrow. Mr. Bell, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, reported
the following bill: A Bill For the relief of the legal
representatives of James Brown.

Committee:
Committee of the Whole House

February
17, 1832

Read
twice, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House to-morrow. Mr.
Bell, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, reported the following
bill: A Bill For the relief of the legal representatives of James
Brown.

Journal
of the House of Representatives of the United States,
1831-1832; FRIDAY, February 17, 1832.

Mr.
Bell, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, made a report on the
petition of Joseph Brown, accompanied by a bill (No. 391) for the
relief of James Brown; which bill was read the first and second time,
and committed to a Committee of the Whole House to-morrow.

Bills
and Resolutions, House of Representatives, 24th Congress, 1st
Session, Read twice, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House
to-morrow. Mr. Everett, from the Committee on Indian Affairs,
reported the following bill: A Bill For the relief of James Brown and
John Brown, half breeds, of the Cherokee nation of Indians.

Committee:
Committee of the Whole House~Committee on Indian Affairs

February
5, 1836

Read
twice, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House to-morrow. Mr.
Everett, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, reported the following
bill: A Bill For the relief of JamesBrown
and John Brown,
half breeds, of the Cherokee nation of Indians.

Bills
and Resolutions, House of Representatives, 22nd Congress, 1st
Session, Read twice, and committed to the Committee of the Whole
House to which is committed the bill (H.R. No. 391) for the relief of
the legal representatives of Joseph Brown. Mr. Mason, from the
Committee on Indian Affairs, reported the following bill: A Bill For
the relief of John W. Flowers, Nicholas Miller, William Drew, and
Joseph Rodgers.

Committee:
Committee of the Whole House~Committee on Indian Affairs

May
10, 1832

Read
twice, and committed to the Committee of the Whole House to which is
committed the bill (H.R. No. 391) for the relief of the legal
representatives of JosephBrown.
Mr. Mason, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, reported the
following bill: A Bill For the relief of John W. Flowers, Nicholas
Miller, William Drew, and Joseph
Rodgers.

I
found the above online as a result of the email I received concerning
the Cherokee Brown's. Although I knew of these Brown's, I did not
know if we were talking about the same John Brown. Having one person
saying this was about my Brown's gave me the will to collect as much
material as I could. I have gone down so many dead geological ends in
the past, what is one more?Notice the mention of a Joseph brown. I
have no idea who he was, but since he was a Brown, I have saved
material about him.

More
Material Sent by the Archivist

Mr.
L. L. Ross
of the National Archives and Records Administration, 700 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW, Washington, D. C. 20408-0001, mailed me a few more pages.
Know that although the final document declaring they were to be paid
is dated March 3rd,
1837, they had first petitioned the government for relief in about
1829 or 1830. The document covers both James and John Brown. I have
transcribed both parts. It reads as follows:

22d
Congress, 2d Session [Rep. No. 73.] Ho. Of Reps.

James
and John Brown

[To
Accompany bill H. R. no. 717.]

Jan
28, 1833

Mr.
Thompson of Georgia made the following report:

The
Committee on Indian Affairs, to whom was referred the petition of
James Brown, and the petition of John Brown, makes the following
report:

[section
on James Brown]

Te
petition of James Brown alleges that he is a citizen and a half breed
of the Cherokee Nation of Indians and that in pursuance of the treaty
of 1819, between the United States and said Indians, he abandoned two
improvements, for which he asks compensation.

The
evidence submitted to the committee shows, that the improvements
claimed by said James Brown, the first, as appears from the evidence,
consisting of fifty-five acres of cleared land, under fence and in
cultivation, with one dwelling house, one and a half stories high,
nineteen feed wide by twenty-two long,, well sealed above and below,
two shed rooms in the rear, piaza in front, under shingle roof, a
good stone chimney, with one fire place below and one above stairs; a
kitchen, smoke house, corn crib, stables, &c; and the other,
consisting of forty acres of improved land, with several ordinarily
good cabins, was, at the time, or immediately after the surrender of
them by said James Brown, worth the sum of six hundred and
forty-seven dollars. That the first of said improvements was said by
said James Brown for his own special use; and that the other
improvement “was made for the use of a school which the said James
Brown did maintain, mostly at his own expense.” And that said James
Brown abandoned said improvements to his successors, without any
consideration from the State of Tennessee or any individual.”

[section
on John Brown]

The
petitioner, John Brown, alleges in his petition, that he is a citizen
of the Cherokee Nation, and that the General Government deprived him
of an improvement made by himself, by including it in a reserve
granted by the United States to David Fields, for which the
petitioner claims compensation. The evidence submitted by the
committee proves, that the improvements for which the petitioner,
John Brown, claims compensation, consisting of, as appears from the
evidence, forty acres of land, enclosed and in cultivation; one grist
mill and two log cabins, was, at the time the said John Brown was
dispossessed, worth the sum of three hundred and thirty dollars, and
the said improvement was included in the reserve granted to the said
David Fields.

The
petitioners claim compensation for improvements of which they were
deprived by the operation of the treaty of 1819, between the United
States and the Cherokee Nation of Indians under the second article of
said treaty by which “the United States agreed to pay according to
the stipulation contained in the treaty of the eighth of July,
eighteen hundred and seventeen, for all improvements on land lying
within the country ceded by the Cherokees, which add real value to
the land.” It is shown by the evidence submitted to the committee,
that the improvements, for which confirmation is now claimed, was
included in the country ceded by the treaty of 1819, and are now
situated within the county of Hamilton, in the state of Tennessee.
According to the officer in charge of the Indian Bureau, addressed to
a member of this committee, in reply to a call for information on the
subject, shows that the office affords no evidence that the
improvements in question were appraised, or paid for according to the
provisions of the treaty of 1819, according to the stipulations
contained in the treaty of the eighth of July, eighteen hundred and
seventeen.” While it is admitted that the treaty of 1817 provided
an allowance for improvements surrendered in pursuance of that
treaty,, to such Indians and Indian countrymen only who actually
emigrated west of the Mississippi River, the committee are of opinion
that the broad provision provided for the second article of the
treaty of 1819, for the payment of the value of improvements
surrendered with the country ceded by the last mentioned treaty,
entitles the petitioners to a fair compensation for the improvements
which they surrendered in pursuance of that treaty. The evidence
shows that those improvements added a certain real value of the
improvements of the ceded lands. By a surrender of those
improvements, the petitioners were deprived of the benefits secured
to the possessor of the land y such improvements. Common justice will
therefore, award to the petitioners renumeration. The committee are
of the opinion that the evidence presented to them bears satisfactory
marks of credibility, and that valuation of the improvements
described by the evidence, is not unreasonable. Believing that James
Brown is entitled to the sum of six hundred and forty seven dollars,,
and that John Brown is entitled to the further sum of three hundred
and thirty dollars,the committee therefore report a bill for their
relief.

This
appears to be saying that they (John and James Brown) lost lands in
Hamilton County, Tennessee, as a result of the treaties of 1817 and
1819. They were not compensated for these loses until 1833. Since
James and John Brown are mentioned together, perhaps they are
brothers. What is important is that both of these men lost their
lands as a result of the treaties of 1817 and 1819, and therefore
where did each go after that?

My
John Brown married on December 23rd,
1820, in Lawrence County, Alabama, on lands that had just been ceded
by the Cherokee Nation to the United States, as well.

Main
Points

James
Brown
. . . in
pursuance of the treaty of 1819 . . .That the first of said
improvements was said by said James Brown for his own special use;
and that the other improvement “was made for the use of a school
which the said James Brown did maintain, mostly at his own expense.”
And that said James Brown abandoned said improvements to his
successors, without any consideration from the State of Tennessee or
any individual.”

James
Brown abandoned his home and a school. Neither the person that moved
into his home nor the state of Tennessee compensated him for his
loss. This suggests the lost lands were in Tennessee.

Davy
Crockett, His Own Story

There
is another source for Cherokees living in Northern Alabama at the
time of the Creek Red Stick War whose surname was “Brown”.
Whereas the story above speaks of a Cherokee Indian named John Brown
having forty acres of land in Hamilton County, Tennessee at the time
of the 1817 and 1819 treaties, Davy Crockette's account puts a
Cherokee named “Old man Brown” south and east of Ditto's
Landing, at the time of the Creek War, 1813-1814. Old Man Brown was
the father of a Cherokee named Colonel “Dick” (Richard) Brown. It
is known that his father was named John Brown. It is known that John
Brown had a son named John Brown. And both Richard and his brother
had sons named John Brown. With all of these Cherokees named John
Brown, I have never been able to separate one John Brown from
another.

From
page 46 Crockett has joined Jackson's army against the Creek Red
Stick Warriors. He says that while General Jackson was still in
Nashville he states that Major Gibson asked for volunteers to go
across the Tennessee River. He and others volunteered..He states; We
went on, and crossed the Tennessee River at a place called Ditto's
Landing; and then traveled about seven miles further, and took up
camp for the night. . . . The next morning however, Major Gibson and
myself concluded that we should separate and take different
directions to see what discoveries we could make; so he took seven of
the men, and I five. Making thirteen in all, including myself. He was
to go by the house of a Cherokee Indian named Dick Brown, and I was
to go by Dick's father's, getting all the information we could. We
were to meet that evening where the roads came together,, fifteen
miles the other side Brown's.

Several
days later, near the end of this encounter, Crockette says; “We
pushed on til we got again to Old Mr. Brown's,which was still about
thirty miles from where we had left the main army.” This
gives us a pretty good idea of where “Old Mr. Brown” lived. They
had left the main army at Ditto's Landing. So he must have lived
about 30 miles south of Ditto's landing. On page 55 Crockette
mentions a Cherokee Colonel, Dick Brown. This has to be the same Dick
Brown he mentioned a few days earlier. He is better known as Richard
Brown. He was a well known figure, and it is known that his father
was named John Brown. The elder John Brown also had a son named John
Brown. Col. Richard Brown also had a son named John Brown. I mention
these Cherokee Brown's because my Brown's lived nearby a decade
later.

Conclusion

So
“Old Mr. Brown” lived about 30 miles from Ditto's Landing, in
1813 or 14. Our John Brown lived in Lawrence County, Alabama 6 years
after that, when he married Polly (Mary) Black.

About Me

Howdy. I am a 60 year old male (as of late December, 2012). I am using this particular photo for two reasons. i.] I am wearing my t-shirt that I bought at Oklahoma Historical Society in Oklahoma City -- I am vrey proud to be an Oklahoman. And ii.] I had just run 2 miles at the gym on a treadmill when that photo was taken. I am also proud to still be able to run a little at 60 years of age. My body is changing though, and I don't know if I'll still be able to run at 61. If it is possible, I will do it. Wish me luck.

I am mostly Caucasian, with a little American Indian and sub-Sahara African DNA mixed in (per DNA testing), Caucasian blood is English, German, and Scots-Irish, probably in equal amounts. American Indian blood seems to be Cherokee and/or Catawba. So many people claim some Cherokee heritage that I hesitate to mention it. Before going further I need to say we are NOT federally enrolled and we don't belong to any of the state recognized groups either. African blood will be researched later. I fear it will be nearly impossible to learn much about, but one day, I'll try. Finding African blood was an unexpected result of searching my Indian blood. Genealogy research is my passion.

My passion has also always been research of any kind, Noone ever hired me to do any, so I made my own research projects,with my genealogy project a prime example. I am proud of our research and have written a book "Finding Our Indian Blood" which will be published shortly by Bluewater Publishing.

I have a Bachelors degree in Mathematics (57 hours) with a Physics Minor (31 hours). I used to search for days on end to be hired to use that degree, but noone cared about it. I was overqualified or underqualified for every job there was. Eventually I gave up and quit telling people about it so I could get hired to do anything.

The bulk of my blogging will be about i.] genalogy research methods; ii.] my family genealogy; iii.] little known Cherokee communities and research; iv.] little known Catawba communities and research; v.] Eventually I will go into African-American genealogy research, especially as it pertains to the mixed race Indian peoples known as "Melungeon". I will fight with my last breath those idiotic notions that the Melungeons are Gypsies or Portuguese. vi.] I love Oklahoma to death. I will write about Oklahoma history as well.

vii.] Years back I had an interest in Bible prophecy. I have always thought you had to be humble to understand it. Thus those who said "God told them" how to interpret things were boasting, therefore they were not humble, therefore you couldn't believe they had any connection at all with God. I suspect God talks only with the meek and the poor, and I might be wrong about that, too. I suspect you'll have to torture me by pulling my teeth without any pain killer to get me to say much about this -- and I wear dentures so good luck with that.

Also, I have an interest in Astronomy, in UFOs, anyhting where I can use my curiosity to consider research of the unknown. I suspect I might not post about these things, either.

I also love dogs, chess, horses, and I suppose goats, too. In fact I must admit I like goats better than I like sheep. It's beyond me why the writers of the Bible preferred sheep, and why they demonized the poor resourceful goat. Well, they also said "for without are dogs" -- shame on them!

If there are no dogs in Heaven, well I am not sure I wanna go there. I recall an episode of "The Twilight Zone" where an elderly man and his dog both died. When they both walked up to the Pearly Gates the man was told his dog wasn't allowed. He said if his dog wasn't allowed, he didn't want to go there, either. Well, it turned out that was the gates of Hell, not Heaven. He eventually reached those Pearly Gates where his buddy was allowed. That's probably the most important lesson about anything that I have ever learned, or am ever likely to learn. And what was that lesson? Dogs are our guardian angels, of course! Well, that's a part of it, anyhow.

Another thing I have learned, I must travel about 20 blind allies to find a nugget of genealogical gold. The vast majority of my research finds nothing at all -- at least not about my family. But it does discover bits and pieces about the big picture, and as such might benefit others more than me. But I too benefit by gaining a little knowledge -- and oh, I do crave knowledge like an addict.

So this blog will cover a little bit about a lot of things, but as time passes that little bit will turn into a mountain, if I live long enough.

For the present though, the blog will cover things related to "my book, "Finding Our Indian Blood", a bit of research of which I am quite proud. It has taken at least 20 years and a thousand hours, and maybe 100 of those hours found something about my family. But the rest was useful also -- the book is only the tip of the iceberg.

I dedicate this blog and book to the thousands of sand grains on the river bottom that can be shown to have, once upon a time, millions of years back, been a part of a larger rock or boulder. And to that rock or boulder that can be proven to have been, millions of years even further back, at the top of the mountain. In short, it is dedicated to making a mountain out of a mole hill.

Oh, and dedicated to discovery, to research of all kinds, colors, shapes and sizes.